We recently connected with Clint Williams and have shared our conversation below.
Clint , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.
I learned to be a musician by growing up in a household where music was always present. My Dad always kept instruments laying around all over the house so naturally I would pick them up and play around with them for fun, not even aware to the fact that music could be a career. And my Mom playing classic songs from the 70’s and 80’s as she cooked and cleaned on a Saturday morning. I fell in love with all of that, so I eventually transitioned into a musician myself creating my own original songs. Once I started using my music as a way to express my personal thoughts and feelings, it became something that I couldn’t live without.
One thing that I think could have sped up my musical process is learning to focus on my own personal style and voice, and consistently building on that. The ability to block out the noise of the crowd and just continue doing you! Also working with others that understand you and your style. It’s not always easy for us artists to open up and let others in on our creative process, but if you find the right people it can accelerate the process.
One of the most essential things an artist can have is “Good Taste”. Because we usually create what we like, so if you have a healthy confidence in your own taste, and you consistently create art that you personally enjoy, you can’t go wrong! I always try to create the music that I would like to listen to. And never being afraid to try whatever crazy idea comes to mind. One of my favorite sayings is” Art Has No Rules” so we can do whatever we want.
One of the biggest obstacles that I personally experienced as an artist was getting influenced by the popular music that was out at the time. When you see a certain style of music getting a lot of notoriety and attention it can be tempting to follow that trend. But it’s actually alot better to stick with your own personal style. Building your own style and fan base will give you more longevity and cult followers. The trendy music usually brings temporary fans that move on to the next thing quickly.
Another obstacle that I’ve faced was learning how to evolve as a musician. The industry and styles are always changing, so it’s important to update yourself while still staying true to who you are and your own personal style. I see alot of artists becoming outdated because they refuse to evolve.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
So I started out in my hometown of Cleveland Ohio doing local shows in the early 2000’s. I eventually got signed to an Ohio based entertainment company called “School House Productions”. After being signed I began going on tours with artists such as Gucci Mane, Young Dro, Young Joc, Gorilla Zoe, Boosie Badazz and many more. After touring for a few years I caught the attention of Young Dro and his Dj, Dj Infamous. They would make it possible for me to be the first artist in Ohio to have a mixtape with Dj Drama’s “Affiliates/ Gangsta Grillz.
Unfortunately things would eventually fall apart at the label and they would no longer be able to continue handling my music career. The departure from School House always meant me losing a lot of my contacts and resources. Some producers would no longer return phone calls and promoters wouldn’t want to book me for shows and etc..
So this time was pretty challenging for me as an artist. I had to either give up on my music career all together or find a way to do it independently. Doing it on my own would cost money, therefore after working various jobs and sides hustles to support myself and music career, I decided to become an entrepreneur.
The business that I began creating was the Car rental business. And by relocating to Atlanta I was able to get that business off the ground and doing well. After getting the car rental business going, I began buying used cars from auctions and online marketplaces such as Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace etc, and then fixing them up and resellings for a profit. So I’m currently working on my Used Car dealer license. My goal is to provide quality vehicles for $5000 or less, catering to costumers that want to pay cash for a vehicle instead of going to the big dealerships for financing.
My decision to become an entrepreneur has given me the ability to fund my own music career and passion. It has also given me the freedom and time to focus on what’s most important to me like family and purpose.
One of the things I’m most proud of is the fact that my family and friends are proud of me and that I’m living a positive life! Karma is real, and God is always watching. I feel that I’ve been receiving more and more blessings because of the way I choose to live my life. My moto is, “Don’t do anything that will make you feel guilty”.
Follow me on socials to keep up with my upcoming music projects and entrepreneurial endeavors!
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
When I decided to leave my hometown of Cleveland Ohio, I moved to Miami Florida for a fresh start. But what I thought would be an easy transition, turned out to be one of the most challenging times of my life!
Finding work was hard due to language barriers and a lack of diversity when it came to the job market, mainly service industry jobs. So I eventually ended up at a Carwash in Aventura Florida detailing luxury cars. It was hard work, mainly surviving from tips. I was also enrolled in College at the time so I would have catch the bus home from work, change clothes and catch another bus to downtown Miami for class. My classes would usually last until about 9pm and then I’d catch the bus home and prepare to do it all again the next day.
This whole process was mentally hard for me due to the fact that it was all happening after all of the performances and touring with major artists. I had everything I needed in Cleveland before all of that, apt, cars, friends, family etc. But something was missing, I needed to search for personal fulfillment, and that meant leaving my comfort zone and starting over completely. Hard reset!!
At the end of all of that struggle and hard work I came out of everything even stronger and focused then ever! My life was broken down completely and rebuilt exactly the way I chose to rebuild it. And that part of me that felt incomplete before leaving Cleveland, it was gone! So I don’t regret a thing.
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
My honest opinion on the climate of music and art in todays society is that it needs alot of improvement. Society seems to be more focused on instant gratification, clout, social media antics and popularity contests instead of actually focusing on raw talent. With the right amount of nurturing and development an artist with raw talent can become a legacy artist that last for generations. I sometimes wonder if we’ll ever discover the next Michael Jackson or Kurt Cobain, because they were imperfect people with raw talent that somehow got discovered. Nowadays those types of artists get frustrated and eventually quit without reaching their full potential.
I believe that the major labels and companies are going to suffer financially if they don’t start signing and supporting real artists. People are getting tired of the microwave music they are pushing right now because it lacks real substance and creativity. The same narratives over and over, sex, drugs, murder, money and arrogance.. This current industry will probably have to collapse and then rebuild.
But the good part is that the true artist will have to emerge in times like this or the music/art world won’t survive, and it’s way to important to this world to just let it die. There’s more ways today to get yourself heard and seen than ever before. We just have to be very self sufficient, and do it our own way…
Contact Info:
- Website: Www.Arcademuzik.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/gam_muzik?igshid=MXh6empmNXVoc3ZreQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/clnt.williams?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Twitter: https://x.com/gambyno216?s=21&t=i8bfEstUczbLUr5CVWQTmw
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@GamTV85?si=x7H5We-ZKsSICSv9
- Other: Simple Auto LLC For car rentals and sales! Instagram: @Simpleautoo
Image Credits
Kalfa Productions